Torrance: Get Shaved

Get Shaved, a Hawaiian shaved ice truck, was one of the first LA food trucks to open a permanent home. Get Shaved opened a shop in Northridge last year and recently a second location in Torrance. It’s a small store front with perhaps enough seating for 20 people. Offering Hawaiian shaved ice, ice cream, shakes and ice cream sandwiches, the line was already out the door a few minutes after they opened at noon one Sunday a few weeks back. We wanted something sweet following brunch at 1321 and the Noodles Partner said we should try Get Shaved since we were in the area.

Get Shaved menu

Having never been to Hawaii, I was unfamiliar with what exactly makes it Hawaiian. Sure, I’ve eaten shaved ice at quite a few Chinese and Taiwanese spots and mostly involves adding fruit, beans, jellies and the like to either finely shaved ice or “snow.” Sometimes there are syrups but I’m fond of condensed milk tying it all together. Looking at the Noodles Partner’s ice and the menu, I gather it’s Hawaiian by some of the native Hawaiian flavors and that you add ice cream to it.

Get Shaved with azuki beans

First you choose your size cup, then goodies like azuki beans or mochi beans, then ice cream– the most Hawaiian flavors being Kona coffee and coconut pineapple and finally the flavorings for the ice. My friend opted for grape and the popular blue raspberry (though I wondered about the blue vanilla). Topped with more azuki beans, her ice was then covered, forcing a bit to smush out. I was totally flabbergasted how they crammed all that in but they do, over and over again much to the delight of kids and adults alike.

mint chip ice cream sandwich

I couldn’t resist getting a mint chip ice cream sandwich with white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. The cookies were really good, very buttery. I was pretty full though and felt sad I couldn’t even eat half this sandwich. I wonder if they’d consider making mini ice cream sandwiches?